There has been a need to develop a system and method to better identify and verify a transaction or other type of event. The event might include, for example, filling out a ballot or other type of document such as, for example, business forms, employment applications, purchase orders, government forms, tax forms, medical forms and documents, laboratory forms, survey forms and school papers.
With respect to ballots, for example, many devices recently have been proposed for casting ballots electronically. For example, U.S. patent application Publication No. U.S. 2003/0173404 A1 published Sep. 18, 2003 discloses a method for reading ballots including reading/imaging each ballot transported on a transport path. Each ballot is read/imaged for orientation indicia, jurisdiction information, and voting selections. The disclosed method requires optically scanning each ballot following the completion of the ballot by a voter.
A voter feedback and receipt system is disclosed in U.S. patent application Publication No. U.S. 2002/0161628 A1 published Oct. 31, 2002. The system includes voter verification of an interpretation of a voter's ballot by a ballot counting device, electronic recording of the verified ballot, and providing a receipt of the verified ballot and votes cast. This system also requires optical scanning of each ballot following completion of the ballot by a voter.
U.S. patent application Publication No. U.S. 2003/0006282 A1 published Jan. 9, 2003 discloses a system and method for electronic voting wherein a voter makes voting selections on a touch screen display. After the voting selections are complete, a voter verifiable paper ballot is printed and an electronic ballot is saved on the system. If the voter is not satisfied with the voting selections reflected on the paper ballot, the paper ballot and the electronic ballot may be discarded and the voter provided a new ballot. This system does not provide a paper ballot that can be utilized in a recount.
Notable disadvantages of the above-identified prior art voting systems are that either an original paper ballot is not used such that there is no original record of the ballots as cast that can be used for a recount, or the system requires optical scanning of each paper ballot and interpreting of the scanned data. The process of scanning each paper ballot cast is a time consuming and expensive step that also inherently includes the possibility of scanning errors which can lead to voter frustration or distrust of the system, especially in close elections.
International patent publication number WO/03/042931 of Lee et al. (hereinafter referred to as “Lee”) discloses an apparatus and method for recording and counting votes. The Lee apparatus includes a writing implement having a writing tip, means for electronically sensing the position of the writing tip relative to a datum position, and means for electronically interpreting the position of the writing tip sensed by the sensing means so as to provide an electronic indication of a mark applied to a voting paper with the writing implement during use.
The Lee apparatus and method provides both a paper ballot and an electronic image thereof; however, Lee does not include means for identifying each of the paper ballots. Nothing is provided to identify one paper ballot from another. The apparatus includes means for including a voter identification number with the electronic data recorded from each paper ballot. However, nothing is provided to correlate the original paper ballot with the electronic data received from the digital pen that is recorded from each ballot. Thus, in a recount of the original ballots, there is no way to correlate the recounted totals with the electronically stored images of the ballots and tabulated results.
Based on the foregoing, it is an object of the present invention to provide a verification and identification system that improves upon, or overcomes the problems and drawbacks associated with prior art verification and identification systems. It is also a more general object of the present invention to provide a unique identifier system for use with digital paper in any practical application.